1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to communications network in general and in particular to devices used to transport large amounts of data in said networks.
2. Prior Art
The use of network devices such as switches, bridges, computers, networks processors etc., for transferring information within communications network is well known in the prior art. One of the requirements placed on these devices is the need for them to transport large volumes of data often referred to as bandwidth.
To meet the high bandwidth requirement the devices are provided with Fat Pipes. A Fat Pipe is a channel with high bandwidth which transmits large amounts of data.
In order to provide Fat Pipes with ample supply of data, high speed storage sub-systems are required. High speed storage systems such as Static Random Access Memories (SRAM) etc., can be used. But these memories are expensive and as a result increase the price of the devices in which they are used.
In addition to being expensive, the prior art high speed memories are low density. That is they can only store a limited amount of data. However, most applications especially those related to internet and other technologies require high density memories. A high density memory is one that is able to store and provide a large amount of data. As a consequence even the prior art high speed memories are not suitable for many applications.
In view of the above there is a need for high speed memories that are low cost and have high densities. As used in this document high speed memories have large Bandwidth (BW) providing large amounts of data in a relatively short time interval.